Imperial Valley News Center

Coachella, California - The recent collapse of an Interstate 10 bridge in Riverside County due to heavy rains is prompting questions among experts about weaknesses in transportation infrastructure and its capacity to withstand increasingly extreme weather events.

Davis, California - When disease-resistant rice is invaded by disease-causing bacteria, a small protein produced by the bacteria betrays the invader. Upon recognizing that protein, the rice plants sense that a microbial attack is underway and are able to mount an immune response to fend off bacterial infection, reports a research team led by the University of California, Davis.

Stanford, California - The United States now produces about as much crude oil as Saudi Arabia does, and enough natural gas to export in large quantities. That's thanks to hydraulic fracturing, a mining practice that involves a rock-cracking pressurized mix of water, sand and chemicals.

Stanford, California - One way to end the problem of political corruption in Washington, D.C., is to establish a new branch of government that serves as an "umpire" against cronyism, a Stanford economist suggests.